Advocates warned President Donald Trump’s cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs are affecting wait times at VA clinics across the Commonwealth and country.
On August 10, Trump revoked the collective bargaining rights of over 370,000 federal employees at the VA. Over 700,000 Virginians are veterans, and thousands more work at VA facilities across the Commonwealth.
“What’s going to happen is VA’s not going to perform as well for veterans, and veterans are going to get harmed,” said Michael Missal, who was the VA's inspector general for nine years until he was fired last month by Donald Trump.
When the cemetery's public affairs director attempted to prevent the Trump campaign from illegally filming in a prohibited area where recently deceased service members are buried, a member of Trump’s team pushed past the employee.
Former president Donald Trump has a long history of clashing with military families and US veterans. The newly convicted felon, who famously evaded the Vietnam War draft, has even reportedly called slain US soldiers “losers” and “suckers.”
President Biden’s PACT Act was the most significant expansion of benefits and services for toxic exposed veterans in more than 30 years. The law aims to provide specific support to veterans who have been exposed to toxins, often from open burn pits that were located near where these US military members were stationed.
The program is an attempt to prevent foreclosure actions against former military members still experiencing financial hardship post-pandemic.
